Peter Darling

This is probably one of the best books I have ever read.

Peter Darling is a trans, queer retelling of Peter Pan where Peter is the son of the Darlings, and, after ten years, returns to Neverland to find everything is different.
This book was so incredible. The worldbuilding was brilliant; I really liked the way the fairies had been imagined to be more like insects than the typical fairies we're used to. The way Neverland operated as well, bending to the will of Peter (and Hook) was also intruiging and very well-written.

This book touched on so many interesting topics, such as toxic masculinity in trans men, and I found everything it touched to be handled so caringly and with respect and realism.
Peter himself was not a very nice character to begin with, but I still enjoyed reading about him, and his change in character was gradual and sweet.
I found some of the other characters to be a bit lacking, such as the Lost Boys, though that makes sense after the fabrication of the world, how it bends to Peter's will, is revealed. In a way, this, as well as later descriptions of the world after it becomes snowy actually make the world feel quite sad and empty, though no doubt this is intentional, to clearly demonstrate how unreal it all is.

While the other characters lacked depth, this was very much made up for with the character of Hook. He was a fun antagonist and even better love interest, humorous and enjoyable alongside Peter. Their bonding felt realistic, using the forced proximity trope in the cave, and I enjoyed how the world took a step back as the romance between Peter and Hook was prioritised, further adding to the atmosphere of them being the only real people in all of Neverland.
I also really liked the presentation of queerness, especially in a historical setting such as this. The contrast between Hook's comfort in his sexuality and Peter's realisation and both of their denials about their feelings towards one another were very entertaining and interesting.

Possibly the most important thing about this book for me was Peter's transness. His sureness and insistence, how he runs away to Neverland and refuses to return, making the world turn cold and snowy, and eventually returning with Hook, or, James, to his world and being able to be comfortable with his own body, rather than the pretend one created for him in Neverland. This book allowed space for trans pain that I haven't experienced in other trans books. It was so raw and genuine and I was able to connect with Peter and his transness in a very deep manner. I'm glad that Peter didn't stay in Neverland with his faux male body, and returned to our world, able to be happy with the one he already had. It made me reevaluate my beliefs and desires about my own transness and I cried a